Ferdian Gunawan

Achieving Job Satisfaction At Google

Ferdian’s Accounting and Finance degree has helped him to achieve success in his career.

He has always enjoyed interacting with people from different walks of life. Today, Ferdian Gunawan gets to live out his passion as a Business Strategy Manager (Indonesia) at Google Singapore. The SIM-University of London (UOL) BSc (Honours) in Accounting and Finance graduate shares more about his journey from SIM GE to Google. He also reveals what he truly enjoys most about working at one of the most reputable companies in the world.

Studying In SIM GE

“My family moved to Singapore in 1998. After completing my education at an Indonesian School here, I was looking for a course to enrol in and I came across the Diploma in Management Studies (DMS) programme at SIM GE. What attracted me to the course was the wide range of business management modules covered in this programme and it was also a good pathway for me to pursue my degree studies at an overseas university. After completing my diploma studies, I realised I enjoyed accounting very much and that led me to pursue my studies at UOL.”

Making The Most Of University Life

“As someone who likes to interact with people, I joined the Indonesian Community (InSIM) at SIM GE and got to know many people. I was honoured to be elected as President of the club and it was a very enjoyable experience for me because I got to organise a lot of events and promote initiatives as well as work with different agencies to bring Indonesian students together. One of the important things that I wanted to do during my time as President was to debunk any myth that SIM students were less capable than their local university counterparts, so we participated in many sports competitions with other universities and we won most of the medals. Additionally, we strove to participate in many initiatives outside of campus that enabled our students to shine and showcase their talents. These included showcasing dance & arts performances and being involved in Indonesian Embassy initiatives. I wanted our students to feel proud of who they are and where they came from.”

Doing What He Loves

“I took up an accounting job during my second year at university but I quickly realised that I wouldn’t be able to enjoy it as a career because there was minimum interaction with people and I didn’t quite like the idea of reading numbers in front of the computer all day. So when I graduated, I decided to take up a sales job. I felt that it would certainly give me a lot more opportunities to interact with different people. As a salesperson, I’m also responsible for the deals I seal and my earnings; this kept me motivated.

“I had the opportunity to work in sales in my next two jobs and the best part of it all was that I got to work with clients from all over the world such as Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Latin America and the Carribean. One of the most important things in sales is that you have to understand your clients well in every aspect, including analysing opportunities and recommending solutions to their advantage. This is where my accounting & finance degree came in handy; apart from my research on their backgrounds and cultures, I learned how to provide the best recommendations or solutions after studying and analysing their financial or sales trends and the opportunities that are available for them. When you are backed with the right set of data analysis & recommendation- one that is favorable to clients-the chances of clinching deals are much higher. My successful experience in working with international clients and my ability to work with numbers helped me to clinch the job at Google.”

Ferdian conducting talks at the Google office.

Thriving At Google

“I joined Google in 2015. I am tasked with the responsibility of handling a portfolio made up of high potential businesses and agencies in Indonesia. My job is to ensure that these clients find continued success from their investments with Google. I also have to ensure that the good relationships are maintained with them and their satisfaction is the priority- this is very meaningful to me. It has really been a joy to work here because people are always very nice and helpful, especially when you run into difficulties.

“One of the most important things that I’ve learned at Google is to never shoot anyone’s ideas down because if you keep shooting ideas down, you will eventually end up with no ideas! We strive to always cultivate positivity here and it has changed me on a personal level because I’m now more open than ever to listen to people’s opinions. And last but not least, one of my favourite perks at Google is the café that serves free coffee, it really helps to keep me going all through the day!”

Advice To Students

“I believe that you should always try your best to be involved in activities beyond the classroom because you will always learn many valuable life lessons from your involvement in these different activities which you will not be able to learn in classroom settings. One of the advantages of studying in a university like SIM GE was that I got to meet a lot of friends from many different countries. I even had friends from Nigeria and Mongolia during my time in SIM GE. This early exposure to people of different nationalities and cultures, helped me along the way as I progressed on. So, make the most of what you have and get to know as many international friends as possible. This will definitely work to your advantage, especially when you go out into the working world.”